Crew Review: Comeback extends fast start

Monday

Mar 31, 2014 at 12:01 AMMar 31, 2014 at 8:59 AM

A strong start to the Gregg Berhalter era grew even stronger on Saturday with a dramatic 2-1 victory at Seattle. Down a goal with about 30 minutes left, the Crew drew even on a penalty kick and netted the winner deep into stoppage time to earn its third straight win to open the season.

Adam Jardy, The Columbus Dispatch

Crew view

A strong start to the Gregg Berhalter era grew even stronger on Saturday with a dramatic 2-1 victory at Seattle. Down a goal with about 30 minutes left, the Crew drew even on a penalty kick and netted the winner deep into stoppage time to earn its third straight win to open the season. With three of its next four games at home, the Crew is in position to solidify what already has been an impressive start to the season — provided the team continues to improve within Berhalter’s system. “We still have a long way to go,” the Crew coach said after the game. “In terms of the effort, we’re there. That effort today is exactly what we want. From the physical dimension, we’re close. From the tactics, we still need to improve.”

More pressure

The Crew’s season opener against D.C. United appeared relatively easy compared with the pressure that Philadelphia applied two weeks later. After taking a 2-0 lead on the Union, the Crew allowed a second-half goal and wound up scrambling to hold on. Seattle became the first team to hold a lead against the Crew this season, but Berhalter said his team did a better job of responding to adversity than it did against the Union. “The response after Philly scored against us, I didn’t love,” he said. “(Against Seattle) … that was much better. I’m pleased that we can go into a hostile environment and take control of the game. We made the opponent very reactive, and I like that.”

Controversy

Justin Meram’s winning goal in the 94th minute was as devastating to the Sounders as it was controversial. His strike came after Federico Higuain’s short corner kick came seconds after an official was on the field giving instructions to Sounders defenders. In the eyes of Seattle coach Sigi Schmid, the official had a direct impact on his team’s readiness for the play. “It looked to me from the outside like he was talking to our players, and if you’re talking to our players, why do you let the ball get played?” he said. “If you’re going to talk to our players, then stop the play.” But Schmid added: “That doesn’t make an excuse for us falling asleep. More guys needed to pay attention there so we don’t get caught.”

Lineups

Berhalter made his first change to the starting lineup this season. Because of the fast playing surface at CenturyLink Field, Berhalter started Dominic Oduro at forward in place of Jairo Arrieta to take advantage of his speed against Seattle’s back line. Oduro drew the penalty that both allowed the Crew to tie the score on Higuain’s kick and gave the team a man advantage, but he had to leave with a charley horse moments later. Captain and defender Michael Parkhurst will be in camp with the U.S. national team this week leading up to Wednesday’s friendly against Mexico, but he is expected to be available against Toronto. Expect a wrinkle or two from Berhalter.

League look

A rivalry that essentially has been one-sided since its inception will be keenly watched across the league this weekend when Toronto comes to town. The Crew’s Trillium Cup rival opened the season with a pair of wins before Real Salt Lake handed the Reds a 3-0 loss on Saturday night. Toronto made the biggest offseason splash in league history by signing Michael Bradley, Jermain Defoe and Julio Cesar, among others. However, Toronto still has a ways to go before becoming a cohesive team, an area where the Crew seems well ahead of its rival. This figures to be the first page in an exciting new chapter of the rivalry.

Quotable

“In front of 40,000 fans, these are the moments you live for as a child. These are the shots you do in your backyard. That’s just something that every day you want to do and help the team out.” — Meram, on his winning goal

ajardy@dispatch.com

@AdamJardy

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